TOKYO (Reuters) - Toyota Motor ( TM ) said on Thursday its global sales and production hit record highs in the year ended March 31, thanks to robust demand in each region and the lack of semiconductor supply constraints it had to endure in recent years.

Toyota's ( TM ) parent-only global sales rose 7.3% from a year earlier to 10.31 million units, surpassing the 10 million mark for the first time, while its output came to 9.97 million units, up 9.2% on the year.

The world's largest automaker by volume, however, saw its sales and production fall in March amid fierce competition in China, the world's largest auto market.

Toyota's ( TM ) global sales in March slid 2.1% from a year earlier to 897,251 units, and its output declined 10.3% to 807,026 units.

Its global battery electric vehicle sales in the year to March jumped more than threefold to 116,654 units.